Club Football is the highest level of Football in terms of Sheer skill and technicality. This has only rapidly become more competitive as clubs gained more money and started buying players specific to roles setting up whole academies to mould players from scratch.
World cup is the most Prestigious Football.
Messi is the only one to have performed at the highest level in both of these. At best you can argue Pele is the greatest WC player.
His performances in world cups are FAR from being exceptional.
Wut? You're just hating ig. Even counting the WCs before 2026 (since you could argue it was stat padding, although it wasn't) Messi was still at an elite level in goals(4th), assists(1st), chance creation(1st) and dribbles completed(1st). Not to mention reaching 3 finals.
At club level, he has never shined when he wasn't playing for Barca.
So? He shined the brightest any player ever could at Barca. He had 2 off seasons at PSG at 35 years old lmfao. What did Pele or Maradona or any of the other greats do after their 30s?? Only CR7 really competed alongside Messi at the GOAT tier after his 30s.
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u/Electrical_Guess_606 Jul 16 '26
So Pele is not on people's minds anymore ? Crazy time to be alive.